APS 1 Flashcards
Politics
the process of making collective decisions, usually by governments, to allocate public resources and to create and enforce rules for the operation of society
Political System
the way a society organizes and manages its politics across various levels of public authority
Institutions
rules or sets of rules or practices that determine how people make collective decisions.
Includes: passing laws, interpreting laws,
enforcing laws, counting votes and electing governments, and appointing government employees
Preferences
People’s needs and wants
Branches of Government
Congress (Legislative)
The president (Executive)
The federal courts (Judicial)
Organizations
The Internal Revenue Service
The Rules Committee in the House of Representatives
The electoral college
Political parties
Interest groups
Rules and Procedures
Simple plurality election rules
Separation of powers
Judicial review
Campaign finance laws
federal system
there are multiple levels of government with independent authority over important areas of policy. Each resident of the country is also affected by the policies of state and local governments, and by the day-to-day decisions of governors, mayors, council members, attorneys general, prosecutors, assessors, and comptrollers at lower levels of government
collective dilemma
there is a conflict between group goals and individual goals or self-interest
public good
a benefit provided to a group of people that each member can enjoy without necessarily having to pay costs for it, and for which one person’s enjoyment of it does not inhibit the enjoyment of it by others.
A classic example of a public good is clean air to breathe.
private good
a product or benefit provided to you such that your consumption of it precludes others from consuming it
free ride
will benefit from the public good while avoiding the costs of contributing to it
collective-action problem
A situation in which people would be better off if they all cooperated; however, any individual has an incentive not to cooperate as long as others are cooperating.
ex) occupy walls street
prisoner’s dilemma
An interaction between two strategic actors in which neither actor has an incentive to cooperate even though both would be better off if they both cooperated.
coordination problem
situation in which two or more people are all better off if they coordinate on a common course of action, but there is more than one possible course of action to take.
minimum winning coalition
The smallest-size coalition necessary to achieve a goal.
unstable coalition
An instance in which three or more people must make a collective choice from a set of alternatives, but any voting coalition in favor of an alternative can be divided by consideration of another alternative.
agenda setter
An authority that controls what options are decided on by a group.
principal agent (delegation) problem
An instance in which one actor, a principal, contracts another actor, an agent, to act on the principal’s behalf, but the actors may not share the same preferences, and the principal lacks the means to observe all of the agent’s behavior.
bureaucrat
Any government employee who is not part of the ruling powers.
bureaucracy
An agency or office devoted to carrying out tasks for the government in a manner consistent with the law.
public policies
Programs and decisions by the government that are enforced by the rule of law.
path dependence
The notion that earlier events or decisions deeply affect current and future policy decisions or outcomes.
authoritarianism
A political system in which there is no expectation that the government represents the people, and the institutions of government do not give the people a direct voice in who will lead.
dictatorship
An authoritarian political system in which sovereign power is vested in one individual.
monarchy
A political system in which a ruler (usually a king or queen) is chosen by virtue of being the heir of the previous ruler.
oligarchy
A political system in which power resides in a small segment of society.
one-party state
A political system in which one party controls the government and actively seeks to prevent other parties from contesting for power.
democracy
Rule by the people; in practice today this means popular election of the government and basic protections of civil rights and liberties.
republic
A political system in which public officials are chosen to represent the people in an assembly that makes important policy decisions.
political rights
the degree to which a country’s political process allows for open and extensive participation of citizens, with free and fair elections.
civil liberties
the degree to which a country’s people are free to express their views and organize into political parties and other groups, to run for office, to pressure the government, and to insist on the independence of the judiciary.
